Confession
by Summer Orchid
Summary: Hermione has a confession for Draco. Will she be able to trust his love for her or will she only be left empty and broken? WARNING: This fic is labeled M, not for anything graphic or explicit, but for emotional trauma after rape. There is fluff as well.


A.N. This is just a short little one-shot that came to my mind while I was working on the next chapter for my other fic (which will be up soon if you are keeping up with it). Again this is rated M for emotional trauma. Nothing will be described from the rape, it will only be mentioned in passing. I am sorry if you are bothered or offended by this. Also, there is a considerable amount of fluff towards the end.

Okay, I hope you like it *thumbs up.*

Disclaimer: Anything you recognize does not belong to me. Le sigh. I hate these things.

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><p>Hermione collapsed to the atrium floor and watched as her boyfriend of five years stormed out, slamming the door behind him so hard that she felt the whole house shudder. She refused to move from the cold marble and continued to stare at the door. Her heart seemed to be a glutton for pain and held some glimmer of hope. Maybe the door would open, Draco would come back and everything would be alright again. If only she could wake up and find that the last hour had all been a dream, just an ordinary nightmare like so many others. Maybe.<p>

If this were a story, she knew that things would be different. Draco would have listened to her and looked at her with compassion, not with disgust. He would have taken her into his arms and sworn to cherish her more than the man that hurt her. But Hermione knew that if this were truly a fairytale, none of this would have happened in the first place. In the stories, nothing truly horrible ever happened to the damsel in distress. There was always a hero to rush to the rescue and defeat evil in one fell swoop. But this wasn't a fairytale and there was no waking up from the nightmare she was living.

The cold from the stones of the floor started to seep through her clothing. Hermione knew she should probably move, but she just couldn't find the strength. She was numb. Her heart seemed to have stilled. The normal emotional response, she knew, was to cry. To scream in frustration and damn the heavens for her misfortune. How could the man that had more than once proved his devotion to her just walk out on her when she was at her most vulnerable? She honestly had not prepared for his reaction, nor did she really expect the whole white knight routine. Somewhere in the middle would have suited her just fine. She had gone over this conversation again and again. Not a single time did she expect this. Of course she had come up with a worse case scenario, but apparently she didn't think through the situation thoroughly enough.

Hermione's thoughts jumped back to all of the times that Draco had tormented her in years past. The names he had called her rang painfully through her head.

_Worthless. Dirty. Filthy. Wretched. Ugly._

For the first time, Hermione let those words truly affect her, and she shattered. When they were young, it hurt because she couldn't bear to have others think of her that way. Never had she believed that she deserved a single one. But now...now worthless was all that she felt. Worthless and tainted.

She felt the anger and hurt rise with the feelings of disgust towards herself. Hermione pushed herself off of the floor, ran up the stairs and stumbled clumsily into the master bathroom. She turned the water on the hottest setting and stripped her clothes off as if they burnt her. Ducking into the scalding water, she started to scrub. Hermione began to sob as she washed her body again and again and again. She needed to feel clean, pure. Her tears mixed with the water running down her face and she lost herself in the steam now clogging the shower.

Draco was supposed to be angry for her, not at her. He was supposed to have soothed her and assured her that he would be there for her no matter what so that she would not doubt herself. But he did none of those things.

As soon as she told him of her past rape she saw his face cloud over. As she told him of her ex-boyfriend that had brutalized her, betrayed her trust and taken advantage of her, the look of absolute revulsion was clear. Hermione had been so afraid of his rejection that she had told him everything in a rush and had not given him a chance to speak until she was finished. And when she did, all he seemed to be able to do was stare. In those few seconds of silence she could feel her heart drop and her stomach clench.

For what seemed like years, he just stood there looking down on her, but in a moment Hermione blinked and he turned on his heel. He abandoned her without a second glance. She should have known that he would never have accepted her. Hermione berated herself harshly for even thinking that telling him would be the right thing to do. Damn her conscience for putting such stock in honesty. She was starting to see the appeal in the phrase "ignorance is bliss." No man, especially one so possessive as Draco Malfoy, would be able to take the news she had just tactlessly delivered very well. But she had thought that his love for her would make more of a difference. She had hoped that she wouldn't be so easily cast aside again.

A wave of exhaustion swept over her and Hermione sank gracelessly to the floor of the shower. She was so tired. All of her emotions seemed to be falling into each other. For seven years, she had kept the damage from her past abusive relationship to herself. She had too much pride to allow herself to break down and was much too afraid of how people would look at her if she told anyone. So she had decided to deal with it herself. Draco was the first person she ever told and it stung more than she could handle when he rejected her. Her body was wracked with the strength of her sobs and Hermione curled into a ball willing everything to disappear.

ooooooo

Draco stalked out of the house and started walking. He didn't know where he was going, and frankly he didn't care. As his mind flashed back to the wounded look on Hermione's face when he left, he felt a slight pang of guilt at leaving her. He quickly squashed it down again and reminded himself that he had left for her. He was just too angry.

When she had said there was something they needed to talk about, he knew there was something wrong. Hermione had been bashful and fiddled with the buttons on her jacket. There were few things that made her that nervous. Draco growled and punched a light post as he passed it. He hadn't braced nearly enough for the news. The words had spilled out of her mouth faster than his shocked brain could process them. When everything clicked, he knew he had to leave.

Dark rage had spilled out of him like he hadn't felt in a long time. He felt positively murderous. It was a blessing from God that he didn't come across anyone as he skulked through the Muggle neighborhood.

It had been ten years since this would have bothered him. When the war had ended, he had spared no time moving out of the Manor and away from prying eyes. The magical world had been just a little too keen for news of the Malfoy family post-war.

Draco continued walking until he felt the anger dissipate. He no longer wanted to hex the next person he saw to Hell and back, but he still felt the rage simmering in the back of his mind. This was by no means over. He had a score to settle, that was for sure.

ooooooo

Hermione vaguely registered that the water from the shower was now freezing. She didn't care anymore. She was too exhausted to reach and turn off the water.

And that was how Draco found her. He had been drawn up the stairs by the sound of the running water and had broken into the bathroom when Hermione did not respond to him calling her name. He rushed over to the tub, shut off the water, and scooped up the shivering woman. Draco hugged her shaking body to his chest and half ran into the master bedroom.

He placed her gently in the bed and began pulling off his clothes. Hermione's skin was like ice and she was mumbling but he couldn't make out what she was saying through the chattering of her teeth. He joined her under the covers and winced at the temperature of her skin as he molded their bodies together. Her skin almost stung his hands as he rubbed them up and down her back and arms. Under his ministrations Hermione slowly stopped shivering and Draco started to make out what she was saying.

His hands stilled on her back and Draco pushed away from her a little so that he could see her face. Feeling him move Hermione lunged forward and latched her arms around him.

"Please don't leave me again," she sobbed into his chest. Draco's heart lurched at the pain in her voice and began to rub her back again.

"Sh, love. I'm not leaving you again. Not ever."

They stayed like that for a long time and Draco held onto Hermione just as hard as she did him until her crying ceased and he felt her relax against his embrace. This time she was the one to pull back. Draco could see the hurt still clearly in her eyes before she looked down as a faint blush spread across her freckled cheeks.

"Draco, why did you come back? I thought you were leaving me." He grimaced when he realized that he was the source of her breakdown. Begrudgingly, he admitted to himself that she had jumped to the only logical conclusion considering he had stormed out with no explanation. Taking her chin in his hand, he gently tilted her head until their eyes met again.

"Hermione, I left because I was angry." She tried to jerk her head out of his hands, but he held her firmly. "You silly woman, I wasn't angry with you. I left because I wanted to murder that stupid bastard who was too stupid to realize how good he had it." Draco swept away the stray tear that fell from her eye with his thumb. Hermione clung to his chest again and he felt hot tears against his chest.

"I thought you wouldn't want me anymore after...after..." Draco shushed her and lifted her chin to capture her mouth in a tender kiss.

"What happened to you doesn't change who you are. You are still my Hermione. My know-it-all, passionate, beautiful little bookworm." She laughed through her tears and playfully smacked his chest.

"And not to mention abusive," Draco added mockingly as he wiped more of her tears off of her cheeks. "God, woman, how many tears do you have stored up in there?" He watched her face fall and he gathered her into his arms.

"Hermione, I love you. This changes nothing. No, that isn't true. You are even more beautiful now." She lifted her head and arched her eyebrow in a very Malfoy-like fashion. Draco couldn't help but chuckle a little bit.

"Really, I mean it. And I am more grateful that you let me into your life."

Hermione almost couldn't believe her ears. Her heart swelled almost painfully in her chest. She pushed herself up slightly and kissed Draco fiercely. When the parted again Draco saw the tears streaming down her cheeks.

"You are crying again?" Draco was getting slightly worried. He had never seen her cry this much, but he knew it was necessary. She chuckled again and kissed him sweetly on the cheek.

"This time, you great oaf, I am crying because I am happy." Draco smirked and glanced down at her now slightly swollen lips.

"Well, if that made you happy." And he leaned in to grasp her bottom lip between his teeth.

ooooooo

Hermione propped herself up on her elbows as she ran her fingers through Draco's hair. He sighed and relaxed as she worked his scalp. She was still floating on cloud nine. Really, she didn't quite know how she felt yet. All she knew was that he made her happy. She knew it was cheesy, but she felt near to bursting with the love she felt for Draco. Hermione sighed and moved down to settle in her favorite place.

Draco pulled his arm around her shoulder as she nuzzled into his chest.

"Now Hermione, love, how about we get some rest. You have put me through a lot today." Hermione raised her head and smacked him hard on the chest.

"You are such a baby! You are lucky that I love you, Draco Malfoy." Draco growled playfully and pinned her under him.

"Yes. I am lucky. But you, dear Granger, are even more lucky. Do you realize what you made me do today? I had multiple, a few too many, sweet and endearing moments. Did you write them down?" Hermione rolled her eyes and tried to wiggle out from under him.

"Really, I am only going to say these things every so often, so you might want to remember this. You are going to have to deal with me for the next...I don't know. Forever? In the future you might want to recall how dashing and attentive I can be."

Hermione laughed heartily at her boyfriend's antics, knowing all too well that he was only half serious, until something that he said registered.

"Forever?" Draco's mouth slid into his much overused smirk.

"Oh yes, love. It is very cliché and altogether quite obvious, but we Malfoys do not like to let go of what is ours."

Hermione resisted the urge to scoff at his proclaimed possession of her and kissed him soundly.

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><p>A.N. Sorry if anyone was bothered by this. I hope that you liked it. It was my first time writing anything like this and I do tend to like fluff. Please review and tell me what you think.<p>

Thank you for reading :). And a huge thank you to my brilliant beta who is working with limited internet access, Mistwood. You are amazing.


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